eTNHealthinsurance Has 2 Tips for Employers Pressured by Rising Tennessee Health Insurance Costs

Dec. 13, 2011 - PRLog -- Over the last decade, the average family premium for covered employees has risen by 118 percent for large firms and by 103 percent for small firms, according to the Kaiser Family Foundation’s 2011 survey. In the survey’s south region that includes Tennessee, just 51 percent of firms offer health benefits, and the main reason given for not providing coverage was the cost. eTNHealthinsurance encourages business owners to utilize two strategies to bring down the cost of Tennessee health insurance and health care. Both Health Savings Accounts and Health Reimbursement Arrangements can help.

eTNHealthinsurance’s Complete Protection Strategy (http://eTNHealthinsurance.com/The-eTNHealthinsurance-Complete-Protection-Strategy.htm) focuses on how to get necessary coverage at the lowest possible cost. Health Savings Accounts are a primary component of this strategy.

Since 2004, high-deductible health plans that work with a Health Savings Account (HSA) have shown both lower premiums and fewer rate hikes than traditional policies. The cost of HSA plans has risen at a rate of one third to one half that of traditional health plans.

A study of more than 12,000 employer-sponsored health plans released in 2005 by United Benefit Advisors found that premiums increased an average of 9.6 percent for all plans combined, but only 3.4 percent for HSA plans.

The following year, Deloitte Center for Health Solutions released a similar survey indicating that the cost of HSA plans rose by an average 2.8 percent from 2004 until 2005, as compared to 7.3 percent for all health plans combined.

HSA plans also help employees with out-of-pocket costs associated with the plans’ deductibles. Many employers are finding that they can fund a savings account for employees with the money saved on HSA plan premiums. If an employer contributes to an employee’s HSA, the funds become the property of the worker and remain independent of employment. Workers retain HSA funds that may be withdraw tax-free to pay for qualified health care through retirement.

According to the president of eTNHealthinsurance Wiley Long, “A Health Savings Account may be combined with a Health Reimbursement Arrangement (HRA) as long as the HRA does not reimburse expenses that would otherwise go toward the deductible of the HSA-qualified health insurance.”

Establishing a HRA makes it possible to be reimbursed for health insurance premiums and other out-of-expenses health care costs, such as dental and vision services. With a HRA, more medical expenses may be deducted from adjusted gross income than would otherwise be allowed.

Typically, medical expenses are only deductible to the degree that they exceed 7.5 percent of adjusted gross income (AGI).  For someone with AGI of $80,000 and $8,000 of medical expense, only $2,000 of the expense could be taken as a deduction. Using a HRA would make the entire $8,000 deductible as a business expense.

The deadline to get a HRA in place to manage 2012 expenses is December 31, 2011. eTNHealthinsurance provides online resources showing how to establish and use a HRA at http://www.eTNHealthinsurance.com/tennessee-hra.htm. Similar resources are available regarding Health Savings Accounts at http://www.eTNHealthinsurance.com/health-savings-accounts.... Additional resources to help temper the rising cost of Tennessee health insurance in the face of slowed economic growth may also be found at http://eTNHealthinsurance.com/The-eTNHealthinsurance-Comp....

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About eTNHealthinsurance:

eTNHealthinsurance has become a leader in providing educational resources that enable Tennessee families, individuals and small businesses to keep their healthcare costs low. Online research of how to keep premiums low is available at http://www.eTNHealthinsurance.com/how-to-guide.htm and http://www.eTNHealthinsurance.com/health-savings-accounts-in-tennessee.php.

eTNHealthinsurance also provides extensive tools to lower healthcare costs that are not covered by insurance at http://www.eTNHealthinsurance.com/additional-benefits.htm.

Tennessee small business owners, self-employed and residents seeking individual health insurance plans may use eTNHealthinsurance’s instant quotes and online applications. They may also schedule consultations with expert independent advisors to compare coverage options by calling 1-877-224-2052 from 8 AM until 10 PM Central.